In the careers' claws
by SalinaOriginal
Summary: The 74th hunger games are taking place and Cassie O'Hara, district 8, gets reaped. Her only chance to win is using her intelligence and her knives. In the middle of the game she gets caught by the careers and they won't let go of her. OC/CATO FIC
1. Prologue

HEY! omg, this is my first english fanfic (i'm german) and I don't have a beta, so don't expect too much please. Yeah, enjoy.

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_PROLOGUE_

When I opened my eyes, there was only one thing I could think of. I should be dead.

What happened?

I should be dead. The careers found me. I heard their laughter. It still was ringing in my ears when I sat up and looked around. The next second I was on my feet, ready to flee.

"No, Cato, she's up! RUN!", someone yelled, but I didn't care. All I cared about was how I could tell my body to move faster, run faster. I still wasn't up to my standards, my whole body hurt. My muscles ached and I got out of breath.

I must have been unconscious for more than just a day.

I heard him behind me, his feet stomping while he ran. I stopped.

There was no way out, no way to escape from the careers once they really wanted you.

I closed my eyes and the next thing I experienced was fainting again.


	2. Hunting

Chapter 1

"I don't even know why we keep her."

I slowly came back to reality, from a very very long sleep.

"Because she throws knives like a witch, Glimmer.", somebody said. It was a male voice, and it wasn't Cato's, so I supposed it was Marvel's.

"So does Clove.", Glimmer again.

Marvels voice lowered a little bit. "We both know Clove's not as good as her. Clove barely misses, that girl never does."

I felt their eyes lingering on me and pretended to sleep. The others, Cato and Clove, had to be still sleeping, I heard their even breathes.

They wanted to keep me. They wanted to use me, my skills, and then kill me. There was no possible chance that they'd let me live, like they will let each other live in the end, when they take seperate ways in the arena. They'd kill me as soon as they didnt need me anymore.

I decided to get up.

I moaned loudly to demonstrate that I just woke up and stretched.

Then I sat up and looked around.

"Morning, sunshine.", Glimmer growled and looked at me as if it was my fault that I was there.

I didn't respond, I just glared back at her until she looked away. In that moment my belly growled.

"I'm hungry.", I said.

"We all are.", was the only respond I got.

I lay back again and looked up to the sky. It was a bright blue with sprinkles in a darker tone. Way too friendly for a place like that. It didn't fit an arena where people got forced to fight to death. But this was not the time to think about things like that.

I thought about my district instead.

About the soft fabric between my fingertips. About the first dress I did all by myself.

About how proud I was when I sold it and earned my first own money.

I missed district 8. And knowing that i'd never ever see it againt hurt, but I pushed away the thoughts and got up to my feet.

"I'll get us something to eat." I said.

Glimmer laughed way too loudly, Cato and Clove woke up.

"No, no way. You really think we're that dumb?", Marvel said, dismissively smiling at me.

"Well, I'm hungry.", I hissed at him, stretching my limbs.

"I'll go with her.", Cato said, half-way up to his feet.

"No, you're only going to banish the animals.", I remembered the sound of his stomping feets behind me and got goosebumbs.

"Well, what about you Clove?", Marvel asked. "You could catch some too."

"You can suck my dick, Marvel.", she answered angrily. "I'm not going to catch a single squirrel for you, I don't care if you starve.".

He acted like nothing happened. It seemed like they all were already used to that. She didn't like the fact that I was here and she didn't keep it a secret.

"Well, I'm going then.", he said himself, standing up.

"No, you won't!", Glimmer got on her feet too, looking at him angrily. I didn't quiet understand why she was acting like this, but it somehow looked like she was jealous. Like Marvel wanted anything other than killing me.

He sighed, resigning. There was no way Glimmer would come with me, so I looked at Cato.

"Nice.", I growled, doing some steps.

I didn't catch much. A squirrel and three little birds. That would never satisfy us all.

I sighed and pulled my knife out of the third bird. Cato picked it up and put it into his rucksack. His hands were already bloody. I sat down on a rock and hesitated to look at him. I didn't want to go back yet. I knew that I might get nothing to eat that day, because it wasn't enough for us all, and I'd be the last one getting some of the food.

"What are you waiting for?", he asked, contracting his eyebrows. "Death.", I said promptly, but standing up.

He didn't answer, just watched me as I cleaned my knives at my trousers, leaving dark, bloody stripes.

Suddenly he froze. I opened my mouth but no tone came out, so I just slowly turned, to face what he was nodding at.

I almost laughed, but then I got it and was thankfully I didn't.

It was a deer, a few metres away from my rock, standing behind the trees, not even noticing us.

I came up, really slow, and took one of my knives.

The next moment it stucked in the deers neck, just in the main artery.

I laughed relieved and ran over to it to get my knife. Cato then picked it up and carried it on his arms, like it didn't weigh more than a fly.

We then went back to the group.

The deer was good. We ate silently, and I enjoyed the feeling that, for this moment, I was safe. Nobody was dumb enough to attack the careers, and I was a part of them. I was a career, wasn't I? At least I was the careers' lapdog.

"So, who's next?", Cato said, leaning back into the grass. I liftet my head.

"Does that even matter? I'd say we'll roam around in the forest this night, seeing who we can get.", Glimmer said in a cold voice, throwing away one of the bird's bones. A cold shiver ran down my back facing the fact that i'd join one of the careers' killing sprees tonight.

"Can I stay here, guarding our camp?", I said quietly. Nobody seemed to notice me, because I got no respond. Marvel got chosen instead.

A few hours later we got ready to go. There still were 11 tributes, not counting our group, who had to be killed. Glimme and Clove got really excited, while Cato acted all cool. Marvel seemed a little bit sad that he couldn't join us, and I .. well, I was neutral. It was unlikely that we'd get into a fight. The most were dead before even realizing what was going on.

Unless the careers decided to play.


	3. He won't hesitate

We walked and walked through the woods but there were no tributes in sight. The longer we walked, the worse the common mood got. Especially Glimmer and Clove seemed to get more annoyed with every step we did.

"We are too loud.", Glimmer said after almost one hour.

"We are too many, that's it.", Clove glared at me. "We should have left 'Eight' at the camp.". I twirled my hair and looked at the ground, trying not to scratch her beautiful face. "We need as many as possible in case of a fight.", Cato simply said and gave her a look that clearly ended the discussion.

She gave him the same glare as she gave me, but she shut her mouth.

After another ten minutes, I sighed.

"This is senseless, they're hiding too well.", I stopped walking and leaned against a tree. The group stopped and stared at me.

"Well, well, see who's talking!", Glimmer laughed and I felt a strong desire to vomit right there. "Keep walking.", Cato said and moved, but I stood still. "No."

"Excuse me?", Cato said, angry now. Something about his anger was calming. If he'd wanted to see me dead, he'd have done it in this moment. Not like Clove, or Glimmer, who may wait till I was asleep and then put a tracker jacker nest in my sleeping bag.

I sat down next to the tree.

"It's senseless!", I said, louder now. "I want to walk back to the camp.". I know I was stubborn, maybe naive. But I was thirsty and sweaty and all I wanted was a little sleep.

"We should kill her right now Cato, she's just bothering.", Glimmer said and shrugged. "I agree. We'd be much more productive if we'd just kill her now instead of waiting till forever.", Clove said and sat down on a rock.

I swallowed hard and tried to read Catos face. He was considering it. I didn't say anything, we all just waited for his decision. He looked at me and then turned away. "We're not gonna kill her now.", he stopped, turning to me again. "But only if you move NOW!". I winced and came up to my feet. My muscles ached but I knew Cato wouldn't hesitate to snap my neck if I wouldn't obey.

We found two tributes later. Cato killed one, Glimmer the other one. It went fast and nobody seemes really satisfied, but I was glad that they didn't have to watch them torture their victims.

I sat down next to Marvel and gnawed on a bird's bone. My stomach screamed for more but there wasn't much food left and the others were hungry too. I'd have to go hunting the next morning. I stared in the flames and listened to the chewing of the others.

How much time was left for me? One day? Probably more, since Clove didn't seem to get enough food for them all. There still were many tributes left, so theoretically there was no need to hurry.

A little voice in my head was laughing at me. "Cassie O'Hara, since when are you such a wanker? You just give up and wait for your death?", it whispered, but I tried to ignore it.

There was no way out when the careers really wanted you.


End file.
